SAN ANTONIO -- Elena Garza has been taking the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) test since she was in the third grade. Now, an upcoming senior at McCollum High School on San Antonio’s South Side, she doesn’t have to worry about taking the exam but she did discuss the struggles her peers faced.

“Yeah, so there’s always those one questions that are like, I have no idea what they mean and I have no idea what to put,” Garza said.

The STAAR exam was canceled for the 2019-2020 school year due to COVID-19, which has shined a light on the digital divide.

“I have peers that are still struggling with like sending an email,” Garza said. “It’s crazy to just think about, but a lot of students don’t have that technological literacy that is needed to even be successful in a normal setting.”

STAAR testing will take place in the 2020-2021 school year, but fifth- and eighth-graders will not be required to pass the exam to advance to the next grade.

This may relieve students of the pressure of passing, but Garza thinks it will still serve as a burden on top of distance learning.

“Taking these STAAR tests is going to be a huge stressor, especially on the teachers and the students,” Garza said. “It’s just going to be harder than usual and STAAR testing is frustrating already.”  

She believes the state of Texas should part ways with standardized testing and reallocate those funds.

“There’s going to be the person writing the tests and there’s going to be the distributors of the test,” Garza said. “All of that money can be put into easing the mental health of the students and the teachers.”